neigh

American  

[ney] / neɪ /

verb (used without object)

1. to utter the cry of a horse; whinny.

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noun

1. the cry of a horse; whinny.

neigh British  

/ neɪ /

noun

1. the high-pitched cry of a horse; whinny

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verb

1. (intr) to make a neigh or a similar noise

2. (tr) to utter with a sound like a neigh

Etymology

Origin of neigh

before 1000; Middle English ney ( gh ) en, Old English hnǣgan, cognate with Middle Dutch neyen, Old Saxon hnēgian, Middle High German nēgen, Old High German hneigen, Old Norse hneggja; akin to Old Saxon hnechian; Middle Dutch nighen, Middle Low German nigen, Middle High German nyhen; and, with intrusion in the initial, Old Norse gneggja, Norwegian kneggja. See nag ²

Example Sentences

Children ages 4 to 8 will think they know what’s coming from the placid, old-timey barnyard setting, where the horse says “neigh” and the cow says “moo.”

From The Wall Street Journal

“I hear voices shouting, a sharp crack of the whip, horses neighing in protest, the clatter of hooves, the skid of carriage wheels, the Incorrigibles calling, ‘Lumawoo’—whoops!”

From Literature

Across from them in their usual stalls stood the eight neighing horses.

From Los Angeles Times

At that, Samson reared up, neighing horribly, his evil hooves clawing at the air in front of the Huntsman.

From Literature

Horses neighed in terror, dogs stared into space, transfixed by the tremors, and in Central Park, an Egyptian obelisk “trembled from apex to pedestal,” according to a New York Times article dated Aug. 11, 1884.

From New York Times